SELON CHARLIE (CHARLIE SAYS)

France, 2006, 118 minutes, Colour.
Jean- Pierre Bacri, Vincent Lindon, Benoit Magimel, Benoit Poelvoorde, Patrick Pineau, Ferdinand Martin, Sophie Cattani.
Directed by Nicole Garcia.

It is almost a cliché to describe a film as Altmanesque. However, this does serve as a shortcut to saying that there are several strands of plot which cross at various times and interconnect.

Actress Nicole Garcia directed L’ Adversaire in 2002 and is even more ambitious with this complex story of a range of characters in a French town on the Atlantic Coast. It should be said first that Charlie is a ten year old boy – and that it is not always what he actually says that is important. Rather, as the original title suggests, this is life ‘according to Charlie’, life through Charlie’s perceptions.

With so many strands at once, the film is cleverly woven – although the tennis segments, where a young champion really does not want to live the pressures of the professional circuit, are thematically tied in rather than characters encountering each other. But, the rest is quite intricate.

When a native son anthropologist visits home for a seminar, the pompous and somewhat dim mayor makes a splash. A former member of an expedition who had a breakdown is now teaching in the local high school and has Charlie in class. The teacher’s wife is having an affair with Charlie’s father. In the meantime the local Mr Bigs have hired two amateurish crooks who have their own scam which comes undone.

The screenplay is often witty, has some good comedy with the exploits of the mayor and of the criminals, has quite some pathos with the nervous teacher and with affairs and their repercussions. And all the time, ten year old Charlie (Ferdinand Martin) observes until he quietly takes matters into his own hands.

Jean- Pierre Bacri portrayed the most obnoxious narcissistic author to great effect in Look at Me (2004). This time he is the incarnation of the sometimes shrewd, sometimes dumb, sometimes bullying local politician. Another standout is Benoit Poelvoorde as the comic thief, on parole and caring for his invalid mother. Patrick Pineau is the anthropologist and Benoit Magimel is the teacher.

An interesting and entertaining Gallic tale and tales.

1.A pleasing film? Interesting stories, characters? The appeal to the wide audience? The Gallic tone of the film? For a French audience, universal?

2.The settings in the town, by the Atlantic coast? The town itself, homes, school, hall? Streets? Shops and restaurants? The coast and the homes on the cliffs? The farms? The musical score?

3.The title, the focus on Charlie? Not so much on what he said but his perspective? A ten-year-old? The boy, in the family, at school? His perspective on the characters? His activities? His decisions to expose his father? The motivation for the teacher? His final lying about the time? The decision for the family to go to Barcelona?

4.The many strands of the film? The way these were introduced? Intercut? The characters coming across one another? The tennis story and its not being an immediate connection?

5.The tennis story, the young man on the train, the memories of his defeat, the videos? The criticisms made, coach, the public? His partner? Their working together? The coach and his pushing? The training, the matches? The exercise? His going out with the bikies, on the roofs of the carriages, his leap – intentionally falling or a mistake? His crawling to safety, his partner finding him, cleaning him up? His being glad that he was unable to play any more? The partner and his being pleased?

6.The mayor, his age, personality, foolish? A politician? Public relations, the press? His adviser – listening to him, or not? The welcoming to the explorer coming back to the town? His speech, the quotation, his inability to say it? His meeting people, sociable? Seeing him at home? His relationship with the girl – after commenting as he passed in the car about the flowers? His having meals with her? The adviser telling him to give her up? The sexual encounter, taking her to the restaurant, the oysters and breaking up? His going to the old people’s home, joining in the dance? Seeing him at the mayoral office, with the officials? Charlie’s father and his visit, the possibility of another home? His being in his house on the sea, seeing the thief trying to get rid of the television set? Their confrontation, the fight? Sitting and talking, recounting the plot of Hulk? His advising the thief to deny everything? His being in the restaurant when Charlie’s father and Pierre’s wife broke up? His future – after visiting the home of his girlfriend, eating with her, meeting the family, seeing her watch the pope on television? What future relationship with her?

7.The explorer, the prologue, the exploration in the ice and snow, the breakout, the physical and mental collapse? His presence or not at this crisis? His coming to town after so many years, his agreeing to do the seminar? The train ride, his advisers, setting up the slides and the lecture? His meeting the mayor, the opening speech, the socials and the press? His wanting to meet Pierre, their past, the tension? His lectures, the image of the lone hunter, the travel, the mystery of why he travelled? His death? The details of the expedition and exploration? Inviting Pierre to the discussions, the meal, Pierre and his denunciation in public of the explorer? A reconciliation? His persuading Pierre to go? The discussion about his home? His going, meeting his mother, explaining his marriage and child to her? His future work?

8.Pierre, his collapse on the expedition, institutionalised? Returning home, his teaching, the classes and his methods, Charlie in his class? His going to the seminar? The meeting with the explorer, the discussions about what happened? The party, his denunciation of the explorer? His wife walking out? His not knowing about her affair, Charlie and his taking him so that he would discover it? At school, a good teacher, the basketball match and his throwing the ball, his decision to go on the expedition, having a sabbatical without leave? Waiting for his wife to come in? Going to the school, packing up, the teacher praising him – and his decision to stay?

9.Charlie’s father, at home, picking up Charlie, making him wait while he had the rendezvous with the woman? Charlie’s reaction? Too late to go to the supermarket? The issue of building the barbecue? At work, with the old people, with Pierre’s wife and her work? The affair, clashes with his wife? His anger and his crashing into the thief and kicking the car? His going to the mayor, his frustration? Caught with Pierre’s wife, his walking away? The drink in the hotel, his saying that he was comfortable with her but leaving? Going to buy the cement, fixing the barbecue? The reconciliation with his wife? Going to the police with Charlie, the boomerang issue, Charlie saying at what time the accident happened – and not revealing to his father that he had exposed him to Pierre? Going to Barcelona, a new beginning?

10.The thief, his work, his assistant and the potential for bungling? The Mr Bigs and their arranging the crime? His going to visit the old lady, charming her, casing the house? The plan for robbing the television? The rehearsal with the car, the clash with Charlie’s father? The calling off of the crime, his running and trying to stop his assistant? The assistant, going into the house, being caught by the old lady, her pulling on the television cord, her collapse and death? His escape, putting the TV in the van? The thief arriving, seeing what had happened, retrieving the television set, going to the ocean to throw it in? The mayor seeing him, accosting him, the fight? Discussions with the mayor? His being hit with the boomerang? Being helped by the nurse, his eye seeing the police? The interrogation, his fears, pretending amnesia? Charlie saying the wrong time – his being saved and joyfully running out? His devotion to his mother, the meals for her, singing for her?

11.Charlie as a character, his age, experience? His interest in science? Going to discuss with the explorer? His liking Pierre? At home, his closing his ears to the fights? His father making him wait while he met his girlfriend? The exam? His watching Pierre at basketball? The decision to expose his father? Walking away, playing with the boomerang – and hitting the thief? At home, the reconciliation? The interrogation by the police? His giving the false time? Hope for the future?

12.The women and their not being to the fore in the film? The mayor’s wife and daughter? His girlfriend, her work in landscaping, the affair, uninhibited, the meals, the break-off? At home with her family, liking to watch the pope on television? Pierre’s wife, from Finland, the quick marriage, not knowing Pierre truly? At work, the affair? Her stances with Charlie’s father? Being caught, going home to Pierre, her walking out of the meal at his outburst? No reconciliation? Charlie’s mother, the fights with his father? The hope for the future?

13.The intricacies of plot? The crosscutting of characters? The film and the characters coming together?